Yes Brain workbook

146 • DANIEL J SIEGEL & TINA PAYNE BRYSON

Am I communicating to my children that what they do is more important than who they are?

Is my relationship with my child being eroded by my constant pushing for them to do more
or be better?

In the way I communicate with my kids, am I helping their individual sparks grow, or am I
diminishing them?

What we spend our money and our time on, and what we argue about with our kids, can
often reveal a lot about what’s really important to us, and it can reflect what our children think
matters the most to us. So, we want to work on being aware of how we may, even subtly, be
at odds with our own goal of helping kids think for themselves, be empathic, discover their
passions, and be proud of who they are.

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Helping kids develop a Yes Brain, then, comes down to two primary objectives:

1. Allowing each individual child to grow into the fullness of who he or she is, as opposed to
imposing our own needs, desires, and designs.

2. Watching for times our child needs help with skill-building and developing the tools necessary
to thrive.

Guiding our children as we watch them grow into people who know who they are, are able
to face challenges with resilience, can trust their instincts, and who treat others with kindness
and compassion is one of the great joys of parenting. In giving them the gift of a Yes Brain, we
set them up for the chance to live rich, full lives and to have truly authentic success.



Acknowledgments

We appreciate all the parents, grandparents, coaches, educators, clinicians, and
others, who have read and recommended our books through the years. We also want
to thank PESI for being so supportive throughout the whole publication process.
We especially appreciate Karsyn Morse and Linda Jackson, our editors. They have
supported us for years in various capacities of our relationship with their press,
and we love working with them. And finally, and as always, we want to thank Gina
Osher, who has once again played a huge role in the creation of this workbook.
We are grateful for the time, energy, and insight she has generously offered.

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About the Authors

Daniel J. Siegel, MD is a clinical professor of psychiatry at the David Geffen School of
Medicine at UCLA, the founding co-director of the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research
Center, and the executive director of the Mindsight Institute. A graduate of Harvard
Medical School, Dr. Siegel is the author of several books, including the New York Times
bestsellers Aware and Brainstorm, and is the co-author with Tina Payne Bryson of The
Whole-Brain Child, No-Drama Discipline, The Yes Brain, and The Power of Showing Up. He
lives in Los Angeles with his wife, with welcome visits from their adult son and daughter.
Tina Payne Bryson, PhD, is the co-author (with Dan Siegel) of two New York Times
bestsellers—The Whole-Brain Child and No-Drama Discipline—each of which has been
translated into dozens of languages, as well as The Yes Brain, The Power of Showing Up, and
the upcoming The Bottom Line for Baby. She is the Founder and Executive Director of
The Center for Connection, a multidisciplinary clinical practice in Southern California.
Dr. Bryson keynotes conferences and conducts workshops for parents, educators, and
clinicians all over the world, and she frequently consults with schools, businesses, and other
organizations. An LCSW, Tina is a graduate of Baylor University with a Ph.D. from the
University of Southern California.

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